Amazon spins off Kindle Fire work into special firm Seesaw
updated 02:30 pm EDT, Sat October 8, 2011
Amazon tablet projects now in dedicated company
Amazon has quietly dedicated an entire company to producing its Kindle Fire and future tablets. Five US trademark filings (one, two, three, four, five) for the Kindle Fire and its Silk browser are attributed to Seesaw LLC, a company based in Delaware for what's likely legal reasons. The attorneys who filed for the trademarks are the same as those who have filed for many of Amazon's own.
Seesaw likely has its main offices in Amazon's home of Seattle or somewhere other than Delaware. It also isn't the only dedicated hardware group at Amazon, as Lab126 has been producing all of Amazon's e-paper Kindle hardware, likely including the Kindle Touch.
The reasons behind breaking out the tablet group aren't official but could well be the same behind Lab126. By creating a separate company, Amazon might have an easier time investing directly into the Kindle Fire than it would if it were just a sub-division. It also keeps the group culturally separate from Amazon's main online store business and could help Amazon avoid trouble if someone tries to sue over the Kindle Fire.
Microsoft will likely try to extract Kindle Fire royalties for Android use as part of its campaign to discourage use of non-Windows hardware. Apple might see the Kindle Fire as an indirect competitor to the iPad, although its deliberate feature limitations and a genuinely unique custom interface make any lawsuit less likely. [via Fusible]
TAGS :
Amazon, industry, gadgets, digital imaging, Microsoft, Android, lawsuits, Apple, iPad, Lab126, Kindle Fire, Seesaw
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Delaware Incorporation
A website run by the state of Delaware explains why businesses like to incorporate there:
"More than 900,000 business entities have their legal home in Delaware including more than 50% of all U.S. publicly-traded companies and 63% of the Fortune 500. Businesses choose Delaware because we provide a complete package of incorporation services including modern and flexible corporate laws, our highly-respected Court of Chancery, a business-friendly State Government, and the customer service oriented Staff of the Delaware Division of Corporations. "
Service with a smile. Now if we could just set up a state with similar policies for ordinary people and for small businesses.